New Update from May 1

We plan to resume services on our campus on Sunday, May 17. The Shelby County Health Department recently released their recommendations for churches, and we will be following their guidelines. It is a 3-phase plan that slowly increases the occupancy limits. 

During phase 1, we can meet together as long as we do not exceed 25% occupancy and provide space for proper social distancing. Based on that figure, our ministry staff feels comfortable allowing 120 people per service in our Sanctuary. We will ask households to sit together and leave 2-3 seats empty between households. We have removed half of the rows and doubled the spacing between the existing rows of chairs to encourage social distancing. 

During this phase, we will resume our 2 morning worship services (8:30am & 11am). We will also have overflow space set up in the gym where we will live stream each service. Ministers & deacons will be on hand to facilitate the overflow service. If several families could volunteer to attend our overflow services in the gym, that would help us in providing adequate space for others, especially during the 11am worship time. 

On Wednesday evenings at 6:30pm, we will hold a prayer, worship, & Bible study time for the entire congregation in the Sanctuary. Childcare will be available for children from birth through Kindergarten during all services. However, if you are more comfortable bringing your children into the worship service, you are always welcome to do so.  

When we resume services on May 17, we will begin to live stream on YouTube (Link: Click HERE). You can join with us live for both the 8:30am and 11am services. If you feel sick, are running a fever, have a weakened immune system, or are unable to join with us for any reason, you can still join us in worship online through the live stream. We will make every effort between services to sanitize our building and minimize the risks of spreading germs, but we do ask you to use common sense and do all you can to help us. We will have hand sanitizer available. However, if you have some at home, please bring it for your own personal use.

Because of the occupancy restrictions and social distancing guidelines, we will not resume any Choirs, Sunday School classes, or Children’s Church during this phase. We will also not resume Sunday evening services at this time. We want to encourage Sunday School classes to meet and minister to one another on Sunday nights via Zoom, FaceTime, text messaging, or phone calls. Once Shelby County enters Phase 2 (50% occupancy), we hope to resume Sunday School, Children’s Church, and some of our other activities for children and youth. However, we are still working through the details to make that happen. An announcement on those programs will come at a later date. 

We will be posting further guidelines for the congregation on Wednesday, May 13.

New Update posted Tuesday, March 24 @ 10:45am

Because of Shelby County’s recent “shelter in place” order, we will be closing the church office through April 7. All activities on our campus during that time have also been canceled. All Sunday worship services until further notice will be online via the church website, YouTube, and Apple Podcasts. Feel free to contact us if you have trouble accessing those service videos.

If you need to reach our ministry staff for any reason, you can still call the church office number (901-853-4253). Your call will be forwarded to one of us. Please let us know if there is any way we can minister to you in this time. We pray that your family stays healthy and safe during this time.

New Update posted Wednesday, March 18 @ 11am

Our President has requested that we avoid gatherings of 10 or more people for 15 days. Therefore, we are canceling our onsite worship services and activities for Sunday, March 22, Wednesday, March 25, and Sunday, March 29. We will be posting a sermon online on Sunday mornings, along with discussion guides and ideas to help you worship as a family. If there is any way in which we can minister to your family at this time, feel free to contact Bro. Jeff. Continue to pray for our nation, government leadership, and world as we walk through this crisis.

The following was originally posted Saturday, March 14 @ 9:30am.

Due to rising concerns regarding COVID-19, we have decided to make the following changes to our upcoming schedule: We will follow our normal morning schedule for Sunday, March 15. We are CANCELING all activities for Sunday night, March 15 as well as Wednesday morning and evening, March 18. We will continue to monitor the situation and make a decision regarding worship on Sunday, March 22 later in the week.

Day of Prayer for the Coronavirus (COVID-19) Global Pandemic

Sunday, March 15, 2020

Our SBC leadership has called on our convention to hold a day of prayer on Sunday, March 15. Tomorrow night, take time to gather with your families and pray for the following:

1. Ask God, in His mercy, to stop this pandemic and save lives -- not only in our communities but around the world, particularly in places that are unequipped medically to deal with the virus. (Isaiah 59:1-2)

2. Pray for President Donald Trump and other government leaders -- international, federal, state, and local -- to have the wisdom to direct us in the best courses of action for prevention and care. (Romans 13:1–4)

3. Scripture says: Teach us to number our days carefully so that we may develop wisdom in our hearts. Pray that the Lord will give us wisdom in this moment of fear as the foundations of what we know are shaken, that others would realize how fragile life is and how real eternity is, and they would see their need to turn to God. (Psalm 90:12)

The following was originally posted on March 13 @ 12pm....

FBC Fisherville Church Family,

The past several weeks have brought a whirlwind of uncertainty and fear to our world. Psalm 28:7 reminds us that even in these chaotic times, our Lord is our strength and our shield. In Him do we trust. In Him do we seek refuge. 

Our church staff is closely monitoring information from the CDC and the Shelby County Health Department regarding COVID-19  and the coronavirus. At this time based on the information we have, we feel comfortable following our normal worship & activity schedule this coming Sunday, March 15. 

We intend to do all we can to allow our church to gather together each week for worship & Bible study, but we also want to be wise by not unnecessarily causing illness to spread during this time. We will be making a few changes to our normal routine for the next several weeks to reduce the possible spread of germs:

• We will do all we can to ensure our facilities are deep-cleaned and disinfected after services on Sundays and Wednesdays, especially in our Children’s Ministry & Senior Adult areas.
• We will forgo our normal fellowship times during services.
• We will not be passing offering plates. We will have ushers stationed at the exit doors at the conclusion of both morning services so that you can drop off your tithes and offering. You may also give online through our website.
• Our Children’s Ministry check-in stations will be operated by designated volunteers in order to minimize the exchange of germs caused by multiple people touching the same objects.
• Exterior doors will be propped open whenever possible for the same reason.

Recommendations for you from the CDC:

• If you have a fever greater than 100.4, cough, runny nose, sore throat or trouble breathing in the last 48 hours, please stay home until those symptoms have been gone for at least 48 hours.

• Wash your hands often with soap and water for at least 20 seconds, especially after going to the bathroom, before eating and after blowing your nose, coughing or sneezing.

• If soap and water are not readily available, use an alcohol-based hand sanitizer with at least 60% alcohol content.

• Cover your cough or sneeze with a tissue, then immediately throw the tissue away.

• Avoid close contact with people who are sick.

• Avoid touching your eyes, nose, and mouth.

Decisions regarding future services (including our Life Action Revival) will be made week-to-week as we see how this virus progresses in our nation and our community. If you feel the need to stay home, feel free to visit our website to listen to past sermons and share prayer requests with our church staff. Sunday sermons are typically posted by Monday.

Please be in prayer for our church, our community, and our world regarding this virus. Pray that the Lord will stop the spread of this virus and that He would give healing to those who have been infected.

FBC Fisherville Ministry Staff